Hunter Boats

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Hunter Boats
TypePrivately held company
IndustryBoat building
Founded1969
FounderMichael Polard
Headquarters
Southampton
,
United Kingdom
ProductsSailboats
Parent
Websitewww.britishhunter.co.uk

Hunter Boats Limited is a British boat builder presently based in Southampton. The company specializes in the design and manufacture of fiberglass sailboats.[1]

The company was founded by in 1969 by Michael Polard, as the Essex Boat Company. In 2009 it became a brand of of Southampton under the name British Hunter.[1]

History[]

The first design produced by the new company was the Squib, an open keelboat designed by Oliver Lee in 1967. Lee also designed a cabin version of the Squib in 1972, the Hunter 19, later called the Europa. Lee was the principle naval architect for the company in this period, designing the and the .[1]

In the early 1970s the company relocated to Rochford and a custom-built plant in that town. At that time it was renamed Hunter Boats Limited and by 1975 David Thomas became the main designer. He drew the Hunter Sonata and the .[1]

In the mid-1970s the company produced many racing sailboats, including the designs of Steven Jones, including the . His was the first production boat to use kevlar laminates in its hull construction. By the 1980s the company started building boats with twin keels and moved away from racing boats to cruising boat designs. The was the first of this new range of cruising sailboats and it won the Best Production Boat of the Year award when it was introduced in 1984. The also won Best Production Cruiser of the Year in 1987 as the company continued to specialize in cruising sailboats.[1]

In 1995 the company introduced the Thomas-designed and the following year it was named Yacht of the Year.[1]

Hunter Boats was bought out in 2003 by the and added to its portfolio of marine companies that included Cornish Crabbers, , the and .[1]

In 2009 Lauren Marine of Southampton purchased the rights, molds and tooling for the Hunter range of boats and built them under the brand of British Hunter, to distinguish it from the American boat building company, Hunter Marine.[1]

In 2018 the company was producing five designs, the , , , and the .[2]

Boats[]

Summary of boats built by Hunter Boats:[1]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Browning, Randy (2018). "Hunter Boats Ltd". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  2. ^ Lauren Marine (2018). "Our Range of Boats". www.britishhunter.co.uk. Retrieved 29 October 2018.

External links[]

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